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Submitted: October 12, 2012
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Backswimmerby *melvynyeo

Photography / Macro / Nature

Notonectidae is a cosmopolitan family of aquatic insects in the order Hemiptera, commonly called backswimmers because they swim upside down. They are all predators, up to nearly 2 cm in size. They are similar in appearance to Corixidae (Water boatmen), but can be separated by differences in their dorsal-ventral coloration, front legs, and predatory behavior. Their dorsum is convex, lightly colored without cross striations. Their front tarsi are not scoop-shaped and their hind legs are fringed for swimming. There are two subfamilies, Notonectinae and Anisopinae, each containing four genera.

The most common genus of backswimmers is Notonecta - streamlined, deep-bodied bugs up to 16 mm long, green, brown or yellowish in colour. As the common name indicates, these aquatic insects swim on their backs, vigorously paddling with their long, hair-fringed hind legs.

Backswimmers are predators and attack prey as large as tadpoles and small fish, and can inflict a painful "bite" on a human being (actually, similar to a mosquito "bite", it is a stab with their tubular mouthpart). They inhabit still freshwater, e.g. lakes, pools, marshes, and are sometimes found in garden ponds. Although primarily aquatic, they can fly well and so can disperse easily to new habitats.

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